Stars and Steel
by Boulderstar2000
Summary: Sequel to my previous crossover story Guns and Swords. It's been two years since Commander Shepard died in the destruction of the Normandy. Without her vouching for the Dragonborn, Analyn, she is quickly shuttled back to her home of Skyrim. However, now that two years have passed, Analyn is about to be surprised with a familiar face and unsurprised with the troubles that follow.
1. Prologue

**Welcome one and all to the sequel to my previous Skyrim/ME crossover, Guns and Swords. If you have not read that story yet, I highly** **recommend** **that you do, as although it is not necessary to understand this story, it would be greatly helpful to you and would offer you a larger understanding of the world and situation that this story is set in.**

 **Without further ado, I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

The ground beneath the Argonian's feet felt strange. It seemed like it had been centuries since she had last stood upon it, when in reality it had been a mere six months. Those months had flown by, full of excitement, discovery, and adventure. She had saved the universe by the side of one of the galaxy's finest from a danger she would not have been able to conceive of on her own.

She had seen what lay beyond the pitiful skies of her world and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get that out of her head.

There was so much more out there. So much besides this place called "Skyrim", or this world named "Nirn".

And yet, it had all been stripped away in a matter of seconds.

Few people of that new world really accepted her outside of the crew; most thought she was too "uncultured" or "barbaric" to be travelling on the Normandy. Behind her back, or so they thought, they called her the "Heathen of the Stars."

Her tale had spread wide and far, how Commander Shepard had brought back a strange and powerful alien from the world she had been stranded on for several months. An alien of a race that hadn't even tried to reach the stars, that was many, many years away from ever reaching them. An alien of a race whose homeworld was still torn by petty wars and conflicts well below the rest of the galaxy.

They were just looking for an opportunity to send Analyn back where she came from.

That opportunity was granted as soon as Shepard was killed in the destruction of the Normandy. As quick as they could, the Alliance shipped her back to Nirn without so much as a "thanks" or "nice knowing you".

Kaidan vouched for her, but it did no good. They all faced their own problems after Shepard's death, and everything the crew could do wasn't enough. Analyn had been granted quick farewells with all of them, then she was gone.

And now she stood back in her home. The land she had known for so much of her life now made impossibly meaningless by what she had experienced in a fraction of the time she had spent here.

With a snarl, she kicked the ground in frustration. What was her purpose? Nothing she ever did on this world would have any real effect.

She screamed her emptiness into the cool night air.

Only the soft sounds of the night responded.

What was she doing. This wasn't helping.

The Argonian filled her lungs with that calm air, and puffed it back out.

She hadn't realized just how much of herself she had tied up in her new companions.

Again she took a deep breath.

She would find her meaning again. She had done it before; she could do it again.

Turning towards the silhouette of Whiterun on the horizon, she started walking.


	2. Chapter 1

**Ladies, gentleman, and anyone in between, here we are at the first full chapter of the story. I'm really excited to see where this goes, and I know it's going to be a blast writing this!**

 **I hope you enjoy!  
**

* * *

"And what happened to Analyn?" That was the last member of her crew that she hadn't asked after.

The hologram in front of her buzzed slightly. "She was returned to her home world after the destruction of the Normandy."

"Add her to the dossier."

The man cleared his throat.

"She was as valuable a member of my crew as any of the others."

"I won't argue with you; she'll be added. Although as soon as she appears to be a problem, she is going right back where she came from." Disgust filled his voice the longer he spoke. The hologram flickered away, and the omnitool on her wrist buzzed as Analyn's file flicked up on it.

Although he had been true to what he said and told her where everyone was, something still seemed off. He wasn't telling her something. Not a lie, exactly, but an omission. She quickly flipped through the files and everything seemed to be in order; there weren't any glaring inconsistencies.

Shepard pushed her feeling aside. She was still herself, and that's what mattered. As long as she kept a clear head, she could handle this. It would be apparent soon enough what unfortunate surprises had been left for her by the Illusive Man.

…

As Shepard stepped off the shuttle onto the golden, windswept plains of Whiterun Hold, she took a deep breath. Fresh, slightly crisp air billowed into her lungs. The place felt strangely welcoming and homey despite all the intense trials and battles she and her crew had survived here.

"Strange to be back, huh?" Garrus spoke behind her as he too stepped onto the semi-foreign world.

"Yeah. It's been a long time. You know, I always meant to visit after the whole Saren thing, get a chance for Analyn to show us around proper, but…" The Commander trailed off.

The Turian placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Let's get going. If I remember correctly, it's a long walk to Whiterun."

"Hm, approximately 2 and a half hours from our current location if I am not mistaken. Which I'm usually not." Mordin, one of her new crew members, piped up as he joined them on the plains. "Although I must say, I am not entirely sure why we are going to such trouble to recruit this… Argonian. Minor biotic powers, skill with swords of all things, she could be replaced by most mercenaries."

"I see you did your reading. That's good." Shepard had quickly taken a shine to the brilliant scientist, and as she didn't fully trust Miranda or Jacob yet, Mordin was her best option to join her squad, despite his odd affect. "The official report likes to make light of her talents. You'll see her 'minor biotic powers' soon enough; just trust that I know her and how skilled she really is."

"If you say so, Commander." He glanced back down at his omnitool. "Where exactly will we find this 'Analyn'? It merely states her location as 'Skyrim Province, Nirn.' That is not specific enough for us to be able to reliably find her."

"Yeah, she's a bit of a wanderer. I figured it might pose an issue, so that's why we're going to the city of Whiterun first. It's a metropolitan center of this place, and someone there must know where she is or where she's been recently."

The Salarian nodded in approval.

"One thing I don't miss about this place are the wild goose chases." Garrus sighed. "Hopefully this time we manage to avoid the Daedra."

…

In 2 and a half hours of walking (exact to Mordin's estimate) the group stood before the entrance to Whiterun. Before they got too close to the gate, Shepard handed Mordin and Garrus two long bundles of fabric.

"They're robes to cover your more… alien features." She answered the implied question.

"I see." Mordin stated. "I read in your report that they 'on average, do not take kindly to strangers.'"

"Well at least they left that part in the report."

In a few minutes both of the non-humans had clasped the robe around their shoulders and pulled the hood down over their faces.

"I feel like I'm back on Omega, hiding like this." Garrus commented.

"Let's try to avoid a situation similar to the one we found ourselves in on Omega." Shepard replied. The Turian gave a bitter chuckle of agreement.

The Commander gave a quick gesture, and the three of them approached the main gate.

"Halt, travelers," the guard standing to the left of the doors spoke as they approached. "What business do you have here?"

Shepard couldn't help but smile a bit since it sounded almost identical to what the guards had said the first time they came here. "We are looking for the Dragonborn, Analyn. Do you know where she might be?"

The guard turned and shared a look with his partner. "Well, you found her. What business do you have with our Jarl?"

She froze. "What do you mean, 'our Jarl'?"

He rolled his eyes and sighed. "Figured you were foreigners. Look, why don't you just leave? You aren't going to be getting an audience with her anyways."

"And why is that?"

The second guard spoke. "We won't just let any random, possibly dangerous foreigner in to see our Jarl, especially since what happened with Balgruuf, may he rest in Sovngarde. Besides, your outfits look almost identical to some troublemakers we had stop by a while back, and they were rightly banned from this place."

Shepard narrowed her eyes. This new fact was interesting; someone other than themselves payed a visit to this place. Someone whose clothes resembled theirs. She gestured to the Cerberus symbol on her armor. "Did they wear a symbol similar to this one?"

The guard nodded, "Aye, that they did."

Annoyance rose in Shepard's gut. She was going to need to have a talk with someone when she got back to the Normandy. "Is there any way you'd let us in? We promise not to cause trouble; we don't know the people who were here before." It was a pitiful plea, even to her own ears.

"Your word is meaningless to us, why in Oblivion should we believe you? Leave before we decide to forcibly remove you from our Hold."

"Fine." Shepard decided that getting into a fight with her guards was not the way she wanted to reintroduce herself to Analyn. "Could you give a message to the Jarl for us?"

"We aren't your errand boys, stranger." He sternly replied.

"I understand. We'll be on our way." Shepard sharply turned and started walking away Mordin behind her, and after a quick glare at the guards, Garrus followed. Once they reached the crossroads by the stables, Shepard stopped. "The hard part is over; we know where Analyn is. Now, we need a way to get into that city without getting into a fight. Any ideas?"

"We could just wait for her to leave the city." Garrus suggested. "She's gotta come out sometime."

"No, that would take too long. Who knows when that would be, how long that would take." Mordin shut the Turian down. "I suggest we sneak in under the cover of night. Stealthy, silent."

"What if we get caught?" Shepard crossed her arms. Sneaking was not really her strong suit.

"Worst case scenario, we fight our way out." He shrugged.

The commander sighed. "As I said before, I would really rather avoid starting a conflict. Any other ideas?"

Garrus shrugged and Mordin tapped his chin thoughtfully, but didn't speak.

"I guess that's it then." The commander sighed. She couldn't think of anything else, and neither could her squad. This was their best option at the moment, and with the human colonies vanishing she really didn't have the time to wait around. "We'll wait until sundown, then sneak in. I'm positive the main door will remain guarded throughout the night, so we'll need to find a place along the wall that's compromised; somewhere low enough to climb over or a hole to crawl through."

"I could scout the area to find a way to get in." Garrus offered.

"Sounds good. Contact me when you find a place."

The Turian gave a brief nod, and left on his mission.

"What should we do while we wait for his return?" Mordin inquired.

"I don't know that there's anything we can do besides just wait."

A few beats of thoughtful silence passed before the scientist replied. "You could tell me about your last, ah, 'visit' here. You seem to believe that the reports are lacking."

"That's because they _are_ lacking!" Shepard took a deep breath. "Things were left out, altered, so that people wouldn't worry or become obsessed with this place. Demon lords and alternate planes of reality can be a lot to take in. That part we all agreed on. However, Analyn was not taken seriously by anyone outside of my crew, and even then half of them were terrified or suspicious of her. Therefore, against my say, they almost completely diminished her part in the whole affair."

"Why do you think so highly of her?"

"The complete story behind that is a long one."

"You might as well tell it; I surmise we will be here for a while, and I am quite interested to hear what you have to say."

"Well, alright then." And so Shepard started with how they woke up at night on a world they had never seen before and were quickly set upon by a gigantic beast.

…

"And that's when, right as we had managed to push back the Daedric forces, we heard the sound of the Normandy flying overhead." Before Shepard could continue, the comm in her ear flicked to life.

"Commander?" Garrus's voice came through. "I think I found us a way to get in."

"Really? Where?"

"You don't sound like you believe me." The smirk was audible in his voice.

Shepard glared in the direction the Turian had left and hoped he felt it. "Is the back talk necessary?"

"Yes, it is."

She sighed. "Just tell me where you are so we can meet up."

"Ok, ok, it's over towards opposite side of where you are now. It's a bit of a climb, but I think it'll work."

"Good, we'll be there in a bit." The comm clicked off. The sun was already starting to set; it would probably be getting close to dark when they reached their destination.

...

True to her estimate, Shepard and Mordin arrived at Garrus's location right as the sun sank below the hills in the distance.

"No one saw me besides some wolves" the Turian said as they approached, gesturing to two furry, lifeless bodies besides him. "So, you think this will work?" He pointed towards the wall to his right.

The ground was elevated slightly, and the wall was lower here than it was for the rest of its length. "The best place we'll find, at least." Shepard nodded in approval.

"Commander, we might want to wait for a while longer so that there is less activity inside the settlement." Mordin stated in his cool, calculating fashion.

"I agree." Garrus followed up.

"You're right, we'll wait. However, as soon as it gets late enough and the city quiets, we move. We have an Argonian to find."

…

 _2 years ago_

She tapped her foot lightly on the ground, a small, metallic sound echoing back at her. Shivers crept up her spine. "Reminds me of a Dwemer ruin."

The other woman smiled. "Not a good thing?"

"Not at all."

"You'll be ok with staying here, though, won't you?"

Suddenly, the weight of everything that had happened seemed to smash down onto the first woman's back. "I- I'm not sure. For the first time in what seems like an eternity, I don't know what I'm getting myself into."

"And is that a bad thing?"

An electric thrill repelled her inhibitions. "This reminds me of the first time I stepped foot into Skyrim; I had no idea I was the Dragonborn, I had no idea of what awaited me. In fact, I just thought I was going to die without a name in some cold village up in the mountains. I was scared of what was to come, I was scared of the unknown. I think I could definitely use some of that, some of that 'I don't know what I'm getting myself into' spirit." She flashed a giddy smile.

"Good."

* * *

 **Breaking and entering is always a good start! Also, I kinda low-key wrote some custom Skyrim backstory/lore here with the replacement of Jarl Balgruuf with Analyn. I think it'll be a good choice though, as I like seeing how it will affect her character. And the question remains, what happened to Balgruuf himself?**

 **Please review and tell me what you think! I always appreciate it!**


	3. Chapter 2

**I'd had this scene floating around in my head for months before I finally got around to typing it out. I'm excited to see how it goes over!**

 **I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Soft footsteps awoke the Argonian. Judging from the darkness that still crowded her room and the lack of the usual sounds that accompanied the daytime bustle of the castle, she guessed it was still late into the night. That's why the sounds of movement had awoken her; they were a stark contrast to the standard of what should be.

She slowly rose from her bed and pulled her sword off the side table. She paused and thought for a moment that perhaps she should put on some armor, but she knew it would be much too loud if she wanted to sneak up on the intruders. Crouching, she crept silently to the door of her room and lightly pushed it open. Hushed whispers flowed in through the crack.

"Well, where would she be?"

"I don't know! We don't have maps of this place!"

"Hm, perhaps this was not the best way to go about this…"

"Hey, this is the only way I could think of to get in since the guards have some weird vendetta against us. Maybe you should have come up with a better idea!"

"Now is not the time to get hostile!"

She couldn't quite place it, but the voices seemed familiar. As Analyn continued to listen to their conversation, she slowly moved closer to where it originated from; a few feet down the hallway past her door. Turning a corner, she saw three figures hunched down in the shadows: the source of the voices.

"We might as well leave before we get caught."

"You're right, we can regroup and-"

Raising her sword, she threw a Mage Light in front of her, over the heads of the intruders. Standing tall, and pointing her blade directly at where she estimated their heads should be, she yelled, "If you wish to keep your lives, surrender now!"

Shocked faces and drawn weapons greeted her statement. Wait, what kind of weapons were those...

Analyn's eyes connected with those of the person closest to her. Green eyes. Ones she had seen before.

"What the fuck?!" The Dragonborn exclaimed.

"Good to see you, Analyn" Shepard stood and holstered her gun.

"What the actual fuck?" Analyn backed up until she hit the wall behind her, sword arm now slightly shaking, but still pointed defiantly at the people before her.

"I have a lot to-"

"No shit! You were dead! I mean, I saw-"

"Me die? Yeah, that's part of what I have to say."

The distant sound of guards shouting broke the moment.

Analyn quickly sheathed her sword and grabbed Shepard by the arm. "We need to go; you don't want to be found here." She sprinted back through the hall to her room, practically dragging the Commander, with the heavy treading behind her indicating that the others were following.

After they were all inside her chambers, the Argonian slammed the door shut behind them. "Ok, you better tell me EXACTLY what the FUCK is going on right this goddamn second!" She screamed quietly. Her head was a mess of roiling thoughts and emotions; she had spent the last two years dealing with the fallout this woman had caused to her life.

"Ok, ok, I understand you're upset, you have every right to be." The Commander took a deep breath, and looked the Argonian in the eyes. "A group named Cerberus revived me, rebuilt me, after the destruction of the Normandy. That's why I'm here, alive."

Analyn took in a breath and slowly let it back out. "Ok, don't really know who that is or how they even managed that, but I'll ignore that for the sake of… well for the sake of not needing to know, I guess."

"You'd know what dying and coming back is like huh?" Analyn noticed that one of the others was Garrus, the Turian, for the first time in all of the commotion when he spoke.

"Yes, but that was for ten minutes." Analyn replied to his remark, then redirected her attention on the previously deceased woman, "Shepard, you've been dead for two years; there's a big difference." Analyn narrowed her eyes. "Speaking of which, I doubt you're here on a courtesy call; Alliance wouldn't really appreciate that, now would they? What's the real reason for you coming here?"

"Actually, about that, I'm not with the Alliance anymore" Shepard admitted.

To be fair, those words shocked Analyn more than those about coming back from the dead. "What? I thought they were your life! You are a military woman, through and through."

"I'm still dead to them. Besides, for what I need to do, it's better this way."

"And what is it you need to do? I have to admit, I'm not a fan of the Alliance, but I knew how important that was to you, and for you to drop that, whatever is going on must be Saren-levels of serious."

"That's an interesting way to put it, but in a way you're right. Human colonies have been vanishing, presumably at the hands of a mysterious race called the 'Collectors', and I need to find out some way to stop them."

"Vanishing like attacked? Doesn't that sort of stuff happen all the time living on the frontier?"

"No, vanishing like all of the inhabitants are gone. Taken away by something no one knows. All the structures remain intact, and there are no signs of conflict at all. There's never anyone left, either."

"Huh, sounds like quite the mystery. I have many talents, but I readily admit solving mysteries isn't really one of them."

"I could still use you on my team. You're an asset, no matter what anyone else says, and whenever I end up confronting the cause of all this, I want you by my side." Shepard extended her hand. "What do you say?"

Hope viciously tore its way through the walls Analyn had built up in her heart. The temptation of running back off into the stars was ridiculously enticing. She could have the life she dreamed of back; she could live some of the best times in her life over again.

The Argonian barely managed to tie down this train of thought, frantically shutting herself down. No matter how enticing the stars were, she knew her place. No matter what happened, she would end up right back here, right back in the same position she was in two years ago, and it would just hurt even more. "I-I'm sorry, Shepard, but I can't. I'm the Jarl now; I have responsibilities. I can't just go gallivanting around like before, as much as I really want to."

The Commander's shoulders sagged slightly. "I understand. You can't just drop your duties at a moment's notice."

Analyn placed a comforting hand on the woman's shoulder. "I'm sorry you had to come all the way out here just to be rejected."

"No, no it's ok. Worth it just to see the scenery again." She managed a smile; the Argonian could tell it was a forced one.

A knock came at the door. "Hold on a moment," Analyn called out and gestured for the others to be silent and get against the wall near the door.

When she opened the door, three of her yellow-clad guards greeted her. "Jarl Analyn!" They briskly saluted. "We heard a commotion and found signs that someone broke into the palace. Are you alright?"

"Yes, yes, I'm fine."

"You wouldn't happen to have seen or heard anything?"

"I'm afraid not, men. Have you checked to see if anything was stolen?"

"No ma'am, we'll get right on that." They saluted again, and walked away to most likely make similar inquiries to the others living in the palace.

With a small sigh of relief, Analyn turned back to the aliens in her room.

Garrus crossed his arms and commented, "it looks like it'll be harder for us to get out than it was to get in."

Analyn absentmindedly scratched the base of one of her horns. "Yeah, you're probably right." She got her thoughts in order for a moment, then spoke again, "You're definitely going to need my help."

"What's the plan?" Shepard asked.

A mischievous grin formed on the Argonian's face. "You can use my tried and true method I like to call 'wait for people to calm their shit then turn invisible and quickly run away'!"

"Quite the title." Garrus chuckled.

Shepard smiled at the joke, but her face quickly returned to its naturally serious form, "That sounds great, but how do you expect us to handle the 'turn invisible' part? We don't have-"

"Ah, ah, ah! I've got you covered!" Analyn cut her off and jogged over to her alchemy table and dug around in the box of potions she kept next to it.

She turned back around with three large, off-white bottles in her arms. "Now that I've got a more… settled lifestyle, I have a lot of unused potions lying around." She gave each squad member one of the bottles. "Drink these and you'll be completely invisible for about a minute and a half as long as you don't touch anything or attack anyone."

"Those seem like slightly arbitrary rules." Garrus remarked. "And is a minute and a half going to be long enough?"

"It should be, if you go quickly. As long as you can make it to some back alley, you'll be fine." Analyn's brow furrowed as a thought came to her. "Wait a minute, why did you have to sneak in here in the first place? The guards can be jerks, but they should've let you in. I hold open audiences with anyone who wishes to speak to me."

Shepard made a face. "I'm not sure, they said we looked like some people who had come before us and caused trouble."

"Specifically pointing out the logo of the Cerberus group." The unfamiliar Salarian added. In the whirlwind of events she had hardly even noticed he was there, let alone be introduced to him.

The dragonborn furrowed her brow. "What logo?"

Shepard gestured to a small black and orange symbol on her clothing. "This one. Has Cerberus come here before?"

It made the Argonian's stomach shrivel, and her blood start wildly flooding her veins. "Yeah you're goddamn right I know that logo. That exact symbol was on the outfits of these two humans who came here a few months ago."

Shepard's expression turned to one of concern. "What did they do? They better not-"

"I'd rather not talk about it. Suffice to say, they have been permanently banned from my hold and if I see their faces here again, if I see their faces anywhere again, you can be damn sure they won't get away from me again."

The questions still obviously burned inside the Commander's mouth, but she refrained from asking them. "I see, I'm sorry. I'm going to have a conversation with a few people when I get back."

"You're actually working for them?" Analyn's brief hope that Shepard was just undercover flitted away.

"Well, yes, but not because I want to. I don't agree with their methods, but they're my only option right now for-"

"Don't trust them. You'd better not trust them."

"I-"

"Promise me you won't let them change you." Analyn's golden eyes directly met Shepard's emerald green ones.

"I promise." The Commander extended her hand, which Analyn took, then pulled the other woman into a tight, friendly hug.

When they stepped apart, Shepard spoke again, "before I forget, I have something to give you." She reached behind her, and handed a slim, black bracelet to Analyn. "This is an omni tool, you can use it to contact us if anything happens, or if Cerberus returns."

Analyn took it and snapped it onto her wrist. "Thank you!" She rotated her arm, admiring her new gear. "To be honest, I've always kinda wanted one." She smiled as the translucent orange interface formed around her forearm.

"It sounds like the guards have settled." The Salarian commented.

"If you want to get out before the daytime routine starts, you'd best get going." Analyn replied.

Shepard nodded. "You're right. Thank you, for everything."

"You too, be safe while you're out there saving the galaxy."

"I will."

…

 _2 Years Ago_

Most of them had scattered when they got aboard; the Commander saying that she would be back shortly, the Lieutenant giving a curt nod and handshake, followed by a brisk, but not unkind, welcome, the Krogan gruffly slapping an affable farewell to the back with a promise for a fight later, and the Turian asking about some lessons later with the bow.

The Quarian and the Asari had stayed with Analyn as the others left to go check on things.

"Are you excited to meet the rest of the crew?" A slightly robotic, accented voice inquired, desperate to break the terse silence that had flooded in to fill the absence of the other crew members.

"If that Pressley person is any standard to judge by, not really."

A sigh hissed through the glowing output. "I'm afraid that you might get that reaction a bit more than wanted, but not everyone will think that."

"She's right! They were all extremely welcoming to me!" The soft, kind voice was quick to try and bolster her friend's words. "Well, mostly," was added meekly to the end.

"Don't worry about it; I don't care. Trust me, as a non-human in Skyrim, I've faced my fair share of prejudice. I can handle whatever anyone aboard this 'ship' has to offer."

"Besides, they'll answer to me if they cause any trouble." The Commander had returned, and her stern affect put aside any inhibitions. "Now, let's go to the Comm Room; we need to regroup after that little 'detour'."

* * *

 **Fun fact, the original version of this is written in broken chunks throughout my U.S. History notes (So that my teacher would think I was taking notes but in reality I was writing fanfiction).**

 **Please review and tell me what you think! I always appreciate it!**


	4. Chapter 3

**Hey guys, sorry this one took a little longer to get out. I think if you're a Mass Effect fan then you know what new game came out this past week and I have been devoting almost all of my time to playing it. Speaking of which, if you have it, what do you think about Andromeda? While it's definitely still a Mass Effect game, it's giving me some Dragon Age Inquisition vibes too. Tell me over in the reveiws!**

 **Anyways, I hope you enjoy the story!**

* * *

"Next up, a Khajiit named Kesh the Clean is here to speak to you about something he assures us is 'absolutely secret'" The guard started to sneer but a quick glare from Analyn stopped the expression cold it its tracks. He cleared his throat and continued, "Will you hear him?" The guard stepped aside to reveal a familiar face.

"Yes, I will." The Jarl made a beckoning gesture with her hand.

He stepped forwards.

"What do you need to talk to me about?" Analyn spoke from her throne. Every day she had public hours where people could bring their problems directly to her. It was normally mundane, go kill this troll, go get my helmet from some bandits, there's a dragon flying around being an asshole. Today had been especially slow, but being greeted with someone she knew was a Daedra worshipper would be bound to liven things up (or so she hoped).

"I'm afraid I come bearing… troubling news. It would be best to talk in private." He bowed his head politely.

Although the Argonian didn't fully trust him, she knew she could take him in a fight if he did turn on her. "Follow me to my meeting room, we can talk there."

"Are you sure?" Hadvar asked from beside her.

"Yes, I'm sure." Analyn gave him a stern look. She hated when he questioned her actions.

The Jarl stood, and started to walk up the stairs behind her, gesturing for Kesh to follow.

Soon, they stood in her chambers, and as soon as the door swung shut behind them, Kesh started talking rapidly.

"Lord Peryite has… severed his connections to me. He refuses to speak, yet I sense an unbalancing in his forces. There are more Afflicted than there should be, and more than He has purpose for. I do not know why this is happening, but it is quite concerning."

"That _is_ interesting information, but I'm not exactly sure what you want me to do about it."

"That is not the… full extent of what has happened." Kesh took a deep breath and slowly let it out. He was fidgety and his gaze kept flicking around the room. "Recently, Peryite's visage appeared, however, it was not the same; it was not… right. It was wild, and radiating a crackling energy. When I asked why he had chosen to appear, he simply stated that he 'needed to reach our plane to defend the one true order' and commanded me to find others to follow his path."

"And what did you say?"

"I refused. This was not the Prince I worshipped in front of me."

"But as his follower, wouldn't you want him to return?"

"No!" The Khajit hissed, "that is not the order of things! That is not how they are meant to be!"

"Ok, ok, I get it." Analyn crossed her arms over her chest. "I still don't see why you're telling me all this."

"It is a warning, a grave warning; a message for you to keep watch for future occurrences." Frustration was evident in his voice, "I have a very bad feeling about this. There is an ominous presence looming, and it will affect more than my Prince."

With that, Kesh took his leave and Analyn returned to her throne in the main hall and finished hearing the requests from her people. Despite the rest of the day going perfectly normally, she couldn't ignore the hollow pit that had started to etch its way into her gut.

As she started to leave the throne room, Hadvar came up to her and said, "That disturbance the other night near your chambers, you're sure you didn't see anything?"

Analyn rolled her eyes, "If I'd seen anything, you know I would've told you."

"Yeah, well I know you happen to have a habit of trying to handle everything yourself."

"Ok, that's accurate," Analyn conceded, "but I swear I didn't see or really hear anything of importance by my room last night." She had forgotten what the bitter sensation of lying felt like until it seeped into her mouth again, but it was necessary.

It was necessary, that's what she kept repeating in her head.

"I also wanted to mention that yesterday the gate guards reported that three strangers dressed like those you had banned tried to enter the city."

"Oh?" She feigned surprise.

He nodded, "they turned them away, of course, but still. It does seem suspicious that those people would visit the same day there was a break-in at the palace."

"You're right; we'll have to keep an eye out."

Hadvar seemed to have something else to say, and started to leave, but Analyn grabbed his arm and said, "I can tell you've still got something rolling around in that head of yours."

"Yeah, but it's, ah, well, a sensitive subject with you, and I didn't really think…"

"Go ahead."

"Ok, well," he sighed, "you haven't had any contact with those space-faring people you helped two years ago, have you?"

"No, I haven't."

"I didn't think so, but I just wanted to check. It might've had something to do with all this."

"That was a good idea; I'm sorry I couldn't help." If there was any doubt that this made her feel slimy, this banished it.

"That's alright! Goodbye, Jarl Analyn." Hadvar saluted, smiled, and went on his way.

Analyn felt like a tanning hide with all the tension that had built up in her body from what had happened over the past 24 hours; she needed a way to relax.

That's when she had an idea. It had been a long while since the Dragonborn had last touched the forge down by Warmaiden's, and smithing had always been a fantastic way for her to detox after a long day of particularly stressful adventuring.

She could make Shepard a new sword; Analyn was sure that the Commander had lost hers after the crashing of the Normandy.

On her way down towards Adrienne's forge, she stopped by her old home of Breezehome and picked up some ores she could work with.

"Good afternoon, Jarl." Adrienne greeted as Analyn approached. "How are things with you? It's been awhile since you've stopped by."

"I'm actually a bit stressed," Analyn awkwardly laughed; "that's why I came here."

"I see; I guess not even a Jarl can be made of stone."

"Think of me more as made of leather."

The poor excuse for a joke garnered a light chuckle from the smith. "Well, I'll let you get to it, then. Don't forget, we have more wares inside."

"Of course." Analyn nodded respectfully and started to shovel coal into the smeltery.

…

After a few hours, Analyn held a beautiful blade in her hands. One-handed and perfectly balanced, it would fit Shepard's fighting style perfectly. Soft leather had been carefully wound around the handle to provide a comfortable grip, that, with some wear, would mold perfectly to the Commander's hand. The Argonian felt a glow of pride at her work; she could probably smith a sword the quality of any Orc's work.

With a smile, Analyn carefully packed the sword up and set off back towards her palace. It already was late into the night and the only souls out and about were drunkards or her guards on patrol. The latter saluted as she passed, to which she responded with a slight nod of approval.

Soon, she stood back in her room and was painstakingly sorting the items she had brought with her back into their proper place.

That's when a blinding light erupted from the wall next to her bed.

"What in Oblivion?" She cried in surprise as she tried to squint and see the source of the uncomfortable brilliance.

Eventually she sorted out where it was most intense and stumbled towards it, groping out blindly. Her hands found purchase on a familiar handle, and when she lifted the object, the light quickly faded and Analyn could see it was Dawnbreaker that she held in her hand.

A clear, loud voice rang out. "My champion! Hear my words and take them to heart!"

It was Meridia.

"Many of my brother and sister Daedra have been… corrupted. I know not what is causing it, but I do know that no good can come from it. There are only a few of us left with our minds untainted, and even fewer willing to take action. They would rather sit and hole themselves up, trying to wait it out, trying to avoid it. I, however, refuse that reality. We must stop it before it takes us all into its grasp!"

"I'm assuming you are including myself in that 'we' you spoke of?"

"Yes! As my champion, you shall serve my will and strive to find out whatever is causing this vile 'change' and destroy it. There are no other options that I see that do not end in both our realms burning."

"That's a little over-dramatic, I think. Where do you propose I go? I can't just wander around hoping I run into-"

"I do not know much, but I do know that it is beyond our scope. Beyond our world." With that last statement, the light radiating from Dawnbreaker flicked off abruptly, and the Daedric presence faded.

"Oh, yes, that helps me so much now I know exactly where to go." The Argonian muttered as she put the blade back in its display by her bedside. She sighed, and settled down in her bed, armor still on. She cleared her mind to try and think through the situation.

Daedra were being corrupted. That was definitely bad. It's most likely what Kesh was talking about when he described the "change" in Peryite. The cause was unknown, in origin, purpose, and location.

That's when a thought came to her. There was one being who might know something about this mysterious situation. Hermaeus Mora, Lord of Knowledge.

The issue was, her Black Books, the only way to directly contact the Daedric Prince, were in her house in Solstheim, and she couldn't really just abandon her duties as Jarl for the week or so it would take to get there, talk to Him, and get back. As she had told Shepard earlier that day, she had actual responsibility now. When you have responsibility, you can't just pack up and leave.

Or could she? This was really important; it could have consequences for the entirety of Tamriel, according to Meridia, and if it really was an issue with the super-powerful Daedric Princes, then Analyn would have to agree on the severity. It was unlikely anything earth-shaking would happen to Whiterun Hold while she was away. Besides, she could leave Hadvar in charge while she was gone. She trusted him to do a good job, and he would (hopefully) understand her point of view.

Nodding to herself, she decided. Analyn was going to be taking a boat ride to Solstheim in the morning.

…

 _2 Years Ago_

After the discussion and the Commander's orders, the Argonian hung back. The Asari noticed her absence, and turned to stand in front of her.

"What is wrong?" She politely inquired.

"I don't know, this is just a lot bigger than I expected it to be."

"Well, didn't you have to face some impossible odds back in Skyrim? How is this different?"

"It's the whole damn galaxy! I didn't even know that the scope got this large, and now it's all in jeopardy, and I'm one of the people that has to try and save it. It was stressful enough having to go through this shit in Skyrim."

"You knew what you were signing up for, so if it was so stressful then why did you agree to do it all again?" The words would sound almost accusatory if they were from anyone besides the Asari.

"I mean, I guess I couldn't live with myself just standing by and not doing anything. It's not necessarily that I hate going through it; if I did, then I wouldn't have put myself in this situation. Plus, I'm a bit of a sucker for adventure." The Argonian added the last comment on in a joking tone, albeit slightly forced.

The Asari smiled. "That's very noble of you."

"After all you know about me, you still think I'm noble?" The Argonian laughed bitterly.

"Of course! You helped us get back to the Normandy, and you do seem to have a penchant for doing the right thing, no matter how much sass you display. I am glad that you did decide to come along with us on our mission."

The Argonian didn't quite know how to respond to the kind words.

The Asari continued, "If you do ever need to vent about the stress, you know that the Commander and I both always are willing to talk."

Was that a slight blush on her cheeks?

"The Commander has her own issues to deal with, I wouldn't want to add on to my own." A smile tugged up the corners of the Argonian's mouth. "I may take you up on that offer of talking with you, though, from time to time."

* * *

 **Time to kick the plot into gear! Please review and tell me what you think, I always appreciate it!**


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